Updates, advisories and surprises

(9:46 AM ET) BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Drug stocks echoed the broader market and inched into the red early Friday. The Amex Pharmaceutical Index
$DRG
and the Amex Biotechnology Index
$BTK
both moved marginally lower to 235.97 and 636.31, respectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJII
slipped 25 points to 8,141. Shares of Botox-maker Allergan Inc.
AGN, +2.01%
fell almost 4% to $44.89 after the company reported lackluster first-quarter earnings.

Energy stocks start month in the plus column

(9:37 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks kicked off the month of May with gains in early action on Friday, despite flat-to-lower action in the broad market. The Amex Oil Index
XOI, +0.37%
rose 0.7% to 883. The Amex Natural Gas Index
XNG, +0.01%
rose 0.6% to 390. Chevron
CVX, +0.56%
dipped 13 cents to $65.97 after it said its net income fell by more than 60%. Crude prices provided a lift to the sector, with futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange rising 30 cents to $51.42.

(9:30 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Consolidated Edison Inc.
ED, +1.22%
said Friday that first-quarter earnings were $180 million, or 66 cents a share, compared to $303 million, or $1.11 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding items, earnings from ongoing operations were $214 million or 78 cents a share compared with $237 million or 87 cents a share in 2008. Analysts polled by FactSet Research estimated, on average, earnings per share of 86 cents.

Software maker SolarWinds sets IPO price range

(8:50 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Software maker SolarWinds Inc. on Friday said it plans to offer 12.1 million shares at an estimated price range of $9.50 to $11.50 a share in a bid to raise about $130 million in its upcoming initial public offering. The Austin, Texas-based maker of software tools for network specialists plans to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWI. J.P. Morgan
JPM, +0.43%
Goldman Sachs
GS, +0.17%
Morgan Stanley
MS, +0.34%
and Jefferies & Co.
JEF
are underwriting the IPO.

Washington Post swings to loss

(8:44 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The Washington Post Co.
WPO
said Friday that it lost $20 million, or $2.04 a share, in the first-quarter. In the year-ago period the media company earned $39 million, or $4.08 a share. Revenue was $1.05 billion, down 1%.

Clorox posts higher profit, raises forecast

(8:42 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Clorox Co.
CLX, +0.52%
said Friday that its third-quarter profit rose to $153 million, or $1.08 a share, from $100 million, or 71 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. Sales at the Oakland, Calif.-based cleaning-products maker were flat at $1.35 billion. On average, analysts polled by FactSet Research expected earnings of 91 cents a share on sales of $1.37 billion. The company raised its full-year forecast to a range of $3.70 to $3.80 a share from its previous range of $3.60 to $3.75 a share, citing strong year-to-date results. It also provided a fiscal 2010 profit forecast of $4.00 to $4.15 a share.

Chevron net income falls 64%, oil production up

(8:41 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Chevron
CVX, +0.56%
said Friday first-quarter net income fell 64% to $1.84 billion, or 92 cents a share, from $5.17 billion, or $2.48 a share in the year-ago period. Sales dropped to $35 billion from $65 billion. Wall Street analysts expected Chevron to earn 86 cents a share, according to a survey by FactSet research. The San Ramon, Calif. oil major said earnings from oil exploration and production declined sharply on lower prices for crude oil and natural gas. Downstream profits improved mainly on gains from asset sales, the company said. Total net oil-equivalent production rose to 2.66 million barrels a day from 2.60 million barrels a day. Cash at the end of the quarter totaled $9.15 billion, down slightly from $9.35 billion at the end of 2009.

Ameren net income rises by $3 million

(8:21 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Ameren Corp.
AEE, +1.83%
said Friday first-quarter net income rose to $141 million, or 66 cents a share, from $138 million, or 66 cents a share in the year-ago period. Excluding one-time items, net income fell to 54 cents a share from 64 cents a share. Revenue fell to $1.9 billion from $2.1 billion. Analysts expected earnings of 54 cents a share for the St. Louis-based utility, according to a survey by FactSet Research. Ameren cut its 2009 adjusted earnings forecast to $2.70 to $3.05 per share, from the prior level of $2.75 to $3.15 a share, after absorbing 7 cents a share in a rate settlement.

Simon Property earnings up 15%

(8:16 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Simon Property Group Inc.
SPG, -0.13%
said Friday that first-quarter earnings were $107 million, or 45 cents a share, compared to $88 million, or 39 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Revenue was $918 million compared to $895 million. Analysts polled by FactSet Research estimated, on average, earnings per share of 25 cents and sales of $886 million. Funds from operations for the quarter increased 13.5% to $477 million from $420 million in the first quarter of 2008. Simon sees FFO in a range of $6.05 to $6.20 per share for the year, and income in a range of $1.45 to $1.60 per share.

American Axle posts wider first-quarter loss

(8:15 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc.
AXL, +0.61%
said Friday that its first-quarter net loss widened to $32.7 million, or 59 cents a share, from a loss of $27 million, or 50 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. The Detroit-based auto-parts maker said the latest quarter's results included 22 cents a share in charges and one-time costs. Net sales dropped to $402 million from $588 million. On average, analysts polled by FactSet Research were looking for a loss of 57 cents a share on revenue of $454 million.

MasterCard profit slips

(8:09 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Credit card processing giant MasterCard
MA, -0.39%
said on Friday that its first quarter profit slipped to $367.2 million, or $2.80 a share, from $446.9 million, or $3.37 a share a year ago. Net revenue slipped to $1.56 billion, from $1.82 billion last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected the company to earn $2.61 a share in the first quarter.

Nicor net income rises 6%

(7:48 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Nicor Inc.
GAS, +0.51%
on Friday said first-quarter preliminary net income rose 6% to $43.8 million, or 96 cents a share, from $41.4 million, or 91 cents a share in the year-ago period. First-quarter revenue at Nicor, a component of the S&P 500
SPX, +0.59%
dropped to $1.1 billion from $1.6 billion. Analysts expected earnings of 78 cents a share, according to a survey by FactSet Research.

Flir Systems earnings up 46%

(7:44 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Flir Systems Inc.
FLIR, +0.33%
said Friday that its first-quarter earnings were $54 million, or 35 cents a share, compared to $37 million, or 24 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Revenue was $272 million, up 15% compared to first-quarter 2008 revenue of $236.9 million. Analysts polled by FactSet Research estimated, on average, earnings per share of 35 cents and sales of $278 million. Flir expects revenue for 2009 to be in the range of $1.2 billion to $1.25 billion, an increase of approximately 14% compared with 2008, and earnings to be in the range of $1.40 to $1.47 per share, an increase of approximately 12% compared with 2008 for the thermal imaging and stabilized camera systems maker.

Apartment Investment posts first-quarter loss

(7:25 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Apartment Investment and Management Co.
AIV, -0.68%
said Friday that it lost $24.5 million, or 33 cents a share, in the first quarter, compared to the year-earlier loss of $24.6 million, or 30 cents a share. The Denver-based real estate investment trust posted funds from operations of 45 cents a share vs. the year-ago 51 cents. On an adjusted basis, FFO was 30 cents a share. Aimco forecasted FFO, before real estate impairments, of 37 cents to 43 cents a share for the second quarter and $1.65 to $1.95 a share for the full year.

NiSource net income falls 16%

(7:23 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) --NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- NiSource
NI, +0.32%
said Friday first-quarter net income fell 16% to $159.3 million, or 58 cents a share, from $189.5 million, or 69 cents a share in the year-ago period. Adjusted income fell to $170.2 million, or 62 cents a share, from $189.4 million, or 69 cents a share in the year-ago period. The Merrillville, Ind. natural gas company booked a $25 million pension expense related to the deterioration in global securities markets. NiSource's adjusted net income beat the Wall Street target of 51 cents a share, according to a survey of analysts by FactSet Research.

PPL profit slips 7.3% as group reaffirms guidance

(7:09 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Electricity generator PPL Corp.
PPL, +1.21%
said Friday that its first-quarter net profit fell 7.3% to $241 million, or 64 cents a share, from $260 million, or 69 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter rose 55% to $2.36 billion. Excluding one-off items, income from continuing operations dipped to 60 cents a share from 61 cents a share due to less favorable exchange rates and lower wholesale energy margins in the U.S. PPL reaffirmed its 2009 forecast for earnings from ongoing operations of 41.60 to $1.90 a share.

Aon profit climbs 28%

(6:50 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Aon Corp.
AOC, +1.20%
said Friday that its first-quarter net profit rose 28% to $280 million, or 97 cents a share, from $218 million, or 68 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter fell 3% to $1.85 billion. The risk management services company said adjusted earnings from continuing operations for the quarter were 76 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had been expecting earnings of 87 cents a share on revenue of $2.08 billion. The group said its lower revenue was due to the impact of exchange rate moves and a 44% decline in investment income, which was partly offset by revenue from acquisitions.

Viad profit falls 91%, earnings guidance cut

(6:16 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Convention and events group Viad Corp.
VVI, -0.64%
said Friday that its first-quarter net profit fell 91% to $1.5 million, or 7 cents a share, from $16.7 million, or 81 cents a share, as revenue dropped 28% to $240.9 million. The group had previously guided for earnings of 18 cents to 33 cents a share and said the shortfall was mainly due to larger-than-expected declines in same-show revenue at its GES unit due to the downturn in the trade show industry. The group also recorded a net restructuring charge of $1.7 million, or 8 cents a share, in the quarter. Viad cuts its 2009 earnings guidance to a range of 60 cents to 85 cents a share, from a range of $1.15 to $1.35 a share, reflecting the revenue outlook for GES as well as restructuring charges.

Northwest Natural Gas profit up, boosts guidance

(6:16 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Northwest Natural Gas Co.
NWN, +0.00%
on Friday said first-quarter profit rose to $47.4 million, or $1.78 a share, from $43.2 million, or $1.63 a share, in the same quarter a year ago. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research produced a consensus forecast of $1.67 a share. The company said gross operating revenues rose to $437.4 million from $387.7 million in the first quarter of 2008. Citing a strong first-quarter performance, the Portland, Ore.-based company raised its full-year earnings guidance, saying it now expected profit in the range of $2.70 to $2.85 a share, up from its February estimate of $2.55 to $2.70 a share.

Amerigroup's profit rises nearly 10%

(6:12 AM ET) LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Amerigroup Corp.
AGP, +0.00%
a provider of managed health-services, said first-quarter net profit rose nearly 10% to $36.9 million, or 69 cents a share, from $33.6 million, or 62 cents a share, earned in the year-earlier quarter. The consensus forecast was for earnings of 53 cents a share, according to a poll of 10 analysts surveyed by FactSet Research. Revenue climbed 15% to $1.23 billion. The company lifted its outlook for fiscal 2009 earnings to the range of $2.70 to $2.85 a share, saying it expects higher membership in the remaining three quarters. Earlier it had forecast earnings of $2.50 to $2.65 a share.

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